There's a big debate going on over whether Bert & Ernie from 'Sesame Street' are gay or not

Yes, folks, this is what it's come to. The internet arguing over whether two puppets from 'Sesame Street' are gay or not.

The whole thing stemmed from recent comments made by a former writer on the kids' TV show, Mark Saltzman, who told Queerty: "I always felt that without a huge agenda, when I was writing Bert & Ernie, they were [gay]. I didn’t have any other way to contextualize them. The other thing was, more than one person referred to Arnie [his own partner] & I as ‘Bert & Ernie. So I don’t think I’d know how else to write them, but as a loving couple.”

However, Sesame Workshop - the educational organisation linked to the show - has released a statement claiming that the pair 'do not have a sexual orientation' and were 'created to teach preschoolers that people can be good friends with those who are very different from themselves':

It seems Mr. Mark Saltzman was asked if Bert & Ernie are gay. It's fine that he feels they are. They're not, of course. But why that question? Does it really matter? Why the need to define people as only gay? There's much more to a human being than just straightness or gayness.